The efficacy of a media literary program for the prevention and treatment of eating disturbances [electronic resource] : implications for the continuum model of eating disorders /

by Coughlin, Janelle Wilder.

Abstract (Summary)

The Efficacy of a Media Literacy Program for the Prevention and Treatment of Eating
Disturbances: Implications for the Continuum Model of Eating Disorders
Janelle Wilder Coughlin
The purpose of the current study was to determine whether a two-session media
literacy program, A.R.M.E.D. (Acknowledging and Rejecting the Media’s Influence on
Eating and Body Image Disturbances), was an effective intervention for individuals who
fell at various points on the eating disorder continuum. Ninety-three female college
students participated in the study, with 46 experimental participants attending A.R.M.E.D
and 47 participants serving as a control group. Between-subjects analyses did not reveal
differences between the experimental and control group on each of the seven dependent
variables. Within-subjects repeated measures analyses did, however, reveal that women
who attended A.R.M.E.D. significantly reduced their drive for thinness and
ineffectiveness from pre-test to follow-up. Internalization of societal standards of beauty
and awareness of the thin body ideal also decreased among media literacy participants
from pre- to post-test; however, these changes were not long-lasting. Results indicate
that booster sessions may be necessary to maintain changes in internalization of societal
standards of beauty and awareness of the thin body ideal. The most noteworthy findings
of the study were those that were revealed when participants were categorized as having
an eating disorder, as being symptomatic of an eating disorder, or as being asymptomatic
of an eating disorder. Mixed-model analyses performed on pre-test, post-test, and followup
data suggest that women responded differently to media literacy depending on their
placement on the eating disorder continuum. Women who were placed in the eating
disorder group significantly decreased their drive for thinness, ineffectiveness, and
internalization of societal standards of beauty from pre-test to follow-up. This suggests
that A.R.M.E.D. may be an effective tertiary treatment intervention. Women who were
symptomatic of eating disorders significantly decreased their body dissatisfaction.
Internalization of societal standards of beauty also decreased among the symptomatic
group; however, these changes were not maintained eight weeks after the program.
Although there are implications that A.R.M.E.D. may require follow-up booster sessions,
it may be a creative and cost-effective secondary prevention intervention. Women who
were asymptomatic of eating disorders did not demonstrate any significant changes from
pre-test to follow-up; however, A.R.M.E.D. may be an option for primary prevention
programming.
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